https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-740-Heading-to-Number-12-Grimmauld-Place/13012956/
Chapter 739: Returning What's Borrowed
Chapter 739: Returning What's Borrowed
Before the Christmas break ended, Kyle and Cona had been staying at Nicolas' estate.
During this time, Cona was just like Kyle on her first visit, spending all her time in the Library, wishing she could stay from morning till night.
Only during mealtimes would she leave for a short while at Perenelle's request, but never for more than an hour.
As for Kyle, it was simpler; he wandered around the estate, casually wreaking havoc on the alchemical gadgets that caught his interest.
To be precise, he took them apart and reassembled them, and in two weeks, there were at least eighty items that Kyle had disassembled, with his handiwork covering every corner of the estate.
From the garden to the attic, to every room that could be opened, Kyle's busy figure could be found.
Of course, most of these alchemical items were eventually restored to their original state by Kyle, with only a small portion being exceptions.
For instance, on the ninth day, the room on the second floor used for watching operas encountered a minor glitch; if someone were to watch an opera, they would notice the left corner of the room occasionally flickering, resembling a faulty lightbulb.
Fortunately, no one other than Kyle entered the room in the following days.
This continued until the last day of the break.
On this day, Kyle and Cona arrived in the garden early in the morning, preparing to return to Hogwarts via the Thestrals' Coach.
"It's rare."
Nicolas escorted the two to the garden, smiling as he watched them put the carriage on the Thestrals.
"Yes, it's been a while since it was this lively here."
Perenelle chimed in, "And both Kyle and Cona are wonderful children. From them, I always feel the vitality and enthusiasm unique to young wizards, and being with them makes me feel younger too... at least a hundred years younger."
"No, Perenelle, you misunderstood." Nicolas shook his head, "I meant that Kyle rarely gives me extra things to do."
Unknowingly, every time Nicolas saw Kyle, his peaceful life was disrupted.
Initially, Kyle brought the Ravenclaw Crown, canceling all plans and staying in the laboratory for several months.
Before that, it had been a decade since he last opened the laboratory door.
Later, when they met again, Kyle brought him the Hufflepuff Cup and Slytherin's Pendent Box, causing him to miss an important opera performance due to the time spent on reassembling them.
Oh, and the time-consuming thousand-year-old Time Turner was also Kyle-related.
But Nicolas willingly accepted these challenges, just as he said before, no alchemist could remain calm when faced with the Ravenclaw Crown, the Hufflepuff Cup, or the Slytherin Pendent Box.
Unless they had never seen them.
Nicolas wished he had never laid eyes on those items, a contradictory yet genuine thought.
Fortunately, things would change after today; this time, Kyle brought nothing troublesome, and once they returned to Hogwarts, Nicolas could enjoy operas like before.
Nicolas was already eager for that.
At this moment, Kyle and Cona finished harnessing the Thestrals.
"We should leave soon, did you forget anything?" Kyle said.
"Nope." Cona shook her head, "But shouldn't we say goodbye to Nicolas and Perenelle?"
"No need, they're old friends." Kyle replied.
"No, Kyle, even with familiar people, leaving without saying goodbye is impolite." Cona frowned, "And I sense something odd about you, as if you're eager to leave this place."
"No, it's just your imagination." Kyle said, "I just... um, want to get back to Hogwarts before the feast."
He couldn't tell Cona that he impulsively disassembled Nicolas's precious room... if Nicolas heard about it, he might not let them leave today.
So it was best to leave now, before anyone discovered it.
"But it's still morning, we have plenty of time." Cona eyed Kyle suspiciously.
Her intuition told her Kyle was hiding something.
"Are you two ready?"
As Kyle searched for an excuse, Nicolas approached with small steps.
"Yes, Nicolas." Cona quickly said, "Thank you for your invitation."
"No need for thanks." Nicolas waved his hand, "By the way, here's my Christmas gift for you... it's a bit late, but still in time."
He presented a red and a golden box, giving the red one to Cona and pushing the golden one into Kyle's hands.
"Christmas gift?" Cona asked in confusion, "But I already received the book and manuscript..."
"This is an additional gift." Nicolas smiled, "If others knew I exchanged a valuable Phoenix Potion for a book, I'd be ridiculed.
Especially by that guy, Michael, he'd spread the word everywhere."
(End of Chapter 739)
"But..."
"Don't refuse, just accept it."
Cona wanted to say something, but Nicolas interrupted her.
He shook his head and said, "You should learn from Kyle in this regard."
Cona turned her head instinctively, only to find that Kyle had already naturally put away the golden box, feeling completely at ease with the situation.
"Well, okay then."
Seeing Kyle's actions, Cona hesitated for a moment before nodding and accepting the box.
"That's right." Nicolas smiled, "But remember, you must open it yourself. It's important."
"Okay, I'll remember." Cona nodded.
Afterwards, Nicolas took a few steps back and, together with Perenelle, watched as the two boarded the carriage.
"Goodbye!" Perenelle waved, "I remember you two will be graduating next year, right? You're welcome to visit us anytime."
Kyle and Cona also stuck their heads out of the carriage window and waved back.
Then, the Niffler spread its wings, slowly lowering its body, and then soared upwards.
The carriage instantly shot into the sky at a steep angle, flying towards Hogwarts.
Looking down now, there was no trace of the estate, only a rocky clearing.
"This is the Brave and Loyal Charm, one of the most powerful defenses of Nicolas's estate." Kyle explained, "Without a guide, even if we turned back now, we wouldn't be able to find the entrance to the estate."
"I've heard of it." Cona said.
Kyle had previously told her about the special magical protection of Nicolas's estate, and after witnessing the wonders there, she didn't find it strange at all.
Not to mention the private library, which would attract countless witches and wizards on its own. If the location of the estate were exposed, it would undoubtedly bring endless trouble.
In such a situation, some protective magic was necessary.
However, they weren't in the mood to discuss this topic at the moment.
After returning to the carriage, both of their gazes fell on the two boxes Nicolas had just given them.
"What do you think is inside?" Cona asked, looking at the box in her hand.
The box was ordinary, a typical gift wrapping, tied with a red ribbon, and there was nothing else unusual about it.
If it were placed among a pile of gifts, Kyle was sure he wouldn't give it a second glance.
"I'm not sure." He shook his head, "If you want to know, why don't you just open it and see for yourself?"
"Can I open it now?" Cona asked hesitantly.
"Why not?" Kyle said, "Nicolas didn't say we had to wait until we got back to Hogwarts to open it."
Cona thought about it and realized that Nicolas hadn't mentioned that.
With a long distance still to go before reaching Hogwarts, Cona's curiosity got the better of her. After a brief moment of consideration, she untied the ribbon on the box.
The carriage fell into an unusual silence, and even Kyle slowed his breathing, watching intently as Cona slowly opened the box.
As the box was opened slightly, Kyle leaned in to get a better look, but a red light suddenly shot out from inside.
The red light darted around the small carriage like a nimble thief, then suddenly turned and landed on Cona's wrist.
By the time Kyle reacted, the red light had already disappeared. At the same time, a silver bracelet with a sparkling phoenix was now on Cona's right wrist.
The bracelet was intricately designed, depicting a phoenix with its tail and head connected, its body a bright silver, and only its eyes were red. Kyle recognized it as a fragment of the Philosopher's Stone.
"What is this?"
"Nicolas said this can help me withstand two Killing Curses." Cona spoke softly.
"When did he say that?" Kyle asked curiously, taking the box and peering inside.
The box was empty, with no note or instructions.
"I just heard his voice." Cona pointed to her ear, "Right when the box was opened."
"Alright." Kyle didn't mind and said thoughtfully, "It seems he's returning the Phoenix Elixir to you, just in a different form."
Kyle paused, suddenly realizing there was a difference between the two.
The Phoenix Elixir was for resurrection, while the bracelet's function was to withstand attacks. It was hard to say which effect was better, but the bracelet's advantage was clear... it could be used twice.
"A magical item that can withstand the Killing Curse, isn't that a bit too precious?" Cona looked at her wrist, where the phoenix was slowly fluttering and spinning, looking as if it had come to life.
"It's fine. Nicolas doesn't lack such things." Kyle said, "And even if you wanted to, you can't go back now."
"How is that possible?" Cona reached out to take off the bracelet.
However, the phoenix, which had been calm, suddenly started moving quickly between her fingers. Cona tried to grab it but missed, and it returned to her wrist.
Cona tried several times, but the result was always the same.
"Ha!" Kyle exclaimed, unable to hold back a laugh as he watched from the side.
"What's so funny?" Cona turned to look at him.
"Nothing, nothing," Kyle shook his head, knowing he couldn't reveal that Cona had just looked like an inept Seeker, repeatedly trying to catch the Golden Snitch but always letting it slip away.
"Alright, you keep it then," Kyle quickly changed the subject, "After all, it was made with the ingredients you brought, so it's rightfully yours."
"But that was meant for Nicolas," Cona said.
"It's fine, he probably kept some for himself," Kyle explained, "If it's just for inscribing magic scripts, it won't require too much."
As Kyle explained, Cona gradually accepted this special gift. She opened the window a little, and sunlight shone in from outside, falling on the Phoenix, transforming its original silver into a light golden-red, like a true Phoenix.
"It's so beautiful..." Cona couldn't take her eyes off it.
Aside from its ability to block Killing Curses, this design alone could capture the hearts of countless witches.
"Kyle, I remember you also learned alchemy from Nicolas, right?" Cona asked curiously, "Can you make something this amazing too?"
"Of course I can," Kyle nodded, but his voice betrayed a hint of nervousness.
Cona's trust in him made Kyle very happy, but her belief was a bit too much.
How long had Kyle been studying alchemy? At most a few years, and alchemy was different from the courses at Hogwarts. It was like a narrow-mouthed bottle; the further you ventured, the more vast the unknown realm became.
To approach Nicolas about this at this time was a bit too presumptuous.
He even felt that Dumbledore might not be able to create something with this design.
However, in front of Cona, he couldn't admit it. After all, there were just the two of them here, and Kyle had no worries about being exposed.
Cona looked for a while longer, then suddenly thought of something.
"Right, Kyle, what's your gift? Open it and see, maybe it's the same as this."
Hearing Cona's words, Kyle's heart skipped a beat.
Would Nicolas's gift to him be something that could block Killing Curses?
Kyle wasn't sure.
He took out his golden box, took a deep breath, and excitedly untied the straps.
Nothing jumped out from inside, and Kyle didn't hear Nicolas's voice, indicating that this was just an ordinary box.
Inside was a layer of velvet padding, and on the padding was a golden object, about the size of a small mirror.
"What's this? Is it a pocket watch?" Cona leaned in, looking at the object in the box with confusion, "Weird, why does it have five hands?"
"No, it's not a pocket watch," Kyle's expression gradually became serious, "This is a Time Turner."
"A Time Turner?"
"That's right," Kyle said solemnly, "And it's a Time Turner from a thousand years ago."
He was all too familiar with this object; it was because of this that he was able to see the four founders of Hogwarts in the Chamber of Secrets.
However, it broke later, and the damage was extensive. Dumbledore sent it to Nicolas for repairs.
It was probably a few years ago, in order to satisfy the enormous magical power needed to activate the Time Turner, Nicolas even came to Hogwarts to borrow Kyle's small bottle of Phoenix Ash.
Kyle held the Time Turner in his hand, and through the hollowed-out gaps on the sides, he could clearly see the flickering red light inside.
Philosopher's Stone... Although it was much smaller, it was still the Philosopher's Stone that could turn base metals into gold and create the Elixir of Life.
After about four years, Nicolas had finally repaired it! But Kyle couldn't understand why Nicolas would send the Time Turner to him. Shouldn't it be sent to Dumbledore? Was it possible that Dumbledore had already used it? Kyle pondered for a moment, then shook his head.
It shouldn't be... If Dumbledore had used this Time Turner, he would have shown some reaction afterwards.
Whether it was disappointment or joy, or something else, there would have been some change from his usual self.
But in Kyle's memory, Dumbledore had always been the same, never showing any change.
Moreover, judging from the color of the Philosopher's Stone, there were no signs of it being used.
This was strange; it was something Dumbledore had longed for, so why did Nicolas send it to Kyle? It didn't make sense.
Unconsciously, Kyle took out the piece of parchment that allowed him to contact Nicolas, wanting to ask him about it.
But as he lowered his head, he saw that words were appearing on the parchment... Additionally, from the words, he could clearly feel how angry Nicolas was at that moment.
"What's this?" Cona looked at the parchment curiously.
"Nothing, just my Charms homework for the holidays, I just grabbed the wrong one," Kyle said, calmly putting the parchment away and placing it at the bottom of his Transfigured Lizard Hide Bag.
Forget it, it's a bit inappropriate now, I'll ask him another time.
...
(End of Chapter)
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